Hasbro sues Asus over the use of the Transformer name

Asus picked an excellent name for its upcoming Android tablet. Too bad the name, Transformer Prime, is very similar to a series of toys created by Hasbro. As it turns out, the toy company owns trademarks for the word “Transformers” and “Transformers Prime”, which is terrible news for Asus. Hasbro threatened to vigilantly defend its trademark and filed a lawsuit against Asus.

Admittedly, the Asus tablet and the Hasbro toys target a different market, but, as TechCrunch points out, Hasbro sells a line of Transformer video games and accessories for the PC and the Xbox 360. It’s also worthy to note that the main character in the series is Optimus Prime, which is close to Transformer Prime; perhaps close enough that people may think the Asus product is somehow endorsed by Hasbro.

It’ll be up to a judge to decide if there is any overlap. The toy maker has asked for an injunction against Asus and the court has given Asus 21 days to respond.